Gift of the GAB - August 2025

Welcome to the Gift of the GAB for August! We’re interested to hear your thoughts on what you’d like to see in future– it’s your newsletter!

Image courtesy of Dallas Hope, NT Housing Policy

Getting Ready for GAM Data Migration – End of August

We’re nearly there! In the last week of August, GAM Content Owners will move all cleared Grants Administration Manual (GAM) documents into one central SharePlus location – an exciting step towards making the GAM simpler and easier to use.

What’s happening?

• All final cleared versions of GAM documents will be brought together in one SharePlus location, making it easier to ensure the latest version is current and relevant.
• Content Owners will be supported with a data migration task card and checklist to guide them through the process.
• Document titles will be updated to better align with NIAA naming conventions.
• Links to published documents will be progressively replaced to ensure a smooth transition and minimise disruption to staff.
• Content owners will be asked to relocate their final cleared documents to:  GAM WORKING DOCUMENTS - Home 

? Drop-In Session for Content Owners
 To help with the transition, we’ll be holding a GAM Data Migration Drop-In Session where Content Owners can ask questions, get guidance, and receive extra support.

 ? For further details, Content Owners can contact Maryanne Fazekas (maryanne.fazekas@niaa.gov.au) or Lauren Gray (lauren.gray@niaa.gov.au).

What this means for you

Thanks for your support as we prepare for this transition.

This month from GSB: Understanding joint consortia arrangements and subcontracting in the NIAA 

We get questions sometimes on joint consortia and subcontracting arrangements.  

This month we will focus on joint consortia decisions made in ‘Select’ phase of the grants lifecycle. 

Next month, we will do a short piece on when subcontracting requests are made after a grant is executed in the ‘Manage’ phase. 

If you have any further questions or would like to know more, please lodge a ticket with the grants front door. 

Application (Select Phase) – joint consortia arrangements and subcontracting in the ‘Establish’ phase

Sometimes, a set of GOGs might specifically allow for joint consortia arrangement applications.  

When this happens, the NIAA funding delegate will consider the benefits vs risks of the joint consortia arrangements and determine relevant value for money. When a joint consortia application is approved for funding, then the terms of the new grant must reflect the consortia arrangement and delegate decision.  

NIAA does this by ensuring the KPIs and deliverables reflect what's going to happen (i.e. who does what, how and why) in Part 3 of the schedule. The grant itself will be issued to the lead organisation who applied for the IAS funding. The sub-contractor will be asked to sign a deed poll annexure for material subcontractor before the contract is executed. The draft contract will also include the sub-contractor Additional Conditions clause . Once a subcontractor is listed in this item, it is treated as being approved for the duration of the Project Agreement (unless a shorter approval period is stated).  

What’s the difference between joint consortia and subcontracting? 

A joint consortia arrangement is when an applicant applies for a subcontracting arrangement before contract execution.

Once executed the lead applicant becomes the grantee and the additional party(s) become a material subcontractor.

Grants Facts: Did You Know?

Clarifying ‘Objectives’ v ‘Outcomes’ in the CGRPs and in the GOG template

These related terms are central to defining what a grant is, e.g. ‘A grant allows the Government to work in partnership with organisations by funding grantees to help address the Government's policy outcome/s while also assisting grantees to achieve their operational objectives.’ [See CGRPs 2.3 or the GAM Design page for Design phase Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)].  

“Objectives should be clearly linked to outcomes set by government and be linked to an entity’s strategic goals and/or directions and stated in a way that clearly communicates what is to be achieved, measured, evaluated and/or assessed.” [CGRPs, 10.3. See also 10.4 for definitions of Output and Input measures]

Some key takeaways:

In the CGRPs:

• ‘Objective’ most commonly references shared or common goals/ strategic aims of (govt and non-govt) stakeholders (CGRPs 8.1; 8.5).  
• ‘Outcome’ most commonly references specific ‘policy outcomes’ of the Government, whether related to the Grant Program or a specific Grant Opportunity.

In the standard GOG template:

• both terms appear in Section 2 About the Grant Program and in Section 2.1 in relation to the specific Grant Opportunity. 

Think Outcomes! 

• While ‘objective/s’ suggests a strategic goal or aspiration, ‘outcome’ or ‘intended outcome’ in the standard GOG template points to measurable changes expected to be delivered by applicants.  
• Guidelines for a grant opportunity should seek to articulate what an ideal project would look like. 
• The intended outcomes should also be formulated in a way that allows for on-going monitoring and evaluation.  

Why it matters 

• Understanding this difference is essential to addressing a core CGRP principle: An Outcomes Orientation (see CGRPs Section 10). 
• CGRPs 10.2. ‘Grants administration should have a performance framework that is linked to an entity’s strategic direction and key performance indicators. Officials should determine the operational objectives that can be used to evaluate a grant. Specifically, officials should determine what change is expected as a result of a grant (the intended outcomes) and then measure the actual outcome.’ 

The CGRPs are accessible as a link on the Select page in the GAM, or you can check it out here

Everyone loves a good news story

If you have a grant-related success you wish to crow about, Gift of the GAB is a great place to share with your colleagues.

Submit your team’s good news story to:

grantdesign@niaa.gov.au

Commonly Used Terms in the CGRPs

‘Must’ v ‘Should’

‘Requirements that must be complied with are denoted by the use of the term must in the CGRPs. The use of the term ‘should’ in the CGRPs denotes better practice’. [CGRPs, Section 1.5.] 

• Must occurs 76 times in the CGRPs (mostly regarding ‘officials’ or ‘accountable authorities’, and mostly - 58 times - in Part 1 Mandatory Requirements), e.g.:
  • S3 The Commonwealth Resource Management Framework (18 times) 
  • S 4. Grants-specific Processes and Requirements (20 times; this includes a number of Requirements for Ministers at 4.10) and 
  • S5 Public Reporting (10 times). 
• Should - occurs 160 times in the CGRPs (154 times in Part 2 Guidance on Key Principles).  This highlights that Part 2 serves as a source of guidance to assist administrators in reconciling best practice principles with sometimes complex real-world constraints. Part 2 nevertheless includes 9 occurrences of ‘must’ which specify mandatory requirements for grants administrators.
• You should check the CGRPs out, if in any doubt! 

Attention Regional and Program staff

Each month we will promote any new GOGs released (including by other agencies) and published on Grant Connect that may be relevant to your stakeholders.

Registering on Grant Connect is easy ? 

In August 2025 no new GOGs with the subject area of “Indigenous” were published, with one relevant Forecast Opportunity currently open.

Indigenous Health Scholarship Program

FO ID: P7444

Agency: Department of Health, Disability and Ageing

Program Name: Health Workforce Program

Description:

The Indigenous Health Scholarship Program (IHSP) (this grant opportunity) assists Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students with their day-to-day expenses (e.g. stationery, books) while they undertake a course in a wide range of health-related professions. This grant also aims to increase the number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the health workforce. 

The program provides $5,000 annually, per scholar, through up to 80 scholarships to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students studying health-related professions in a university, higher education provider, TAFE or Registered Training Organisation (RTO). 

This Forecast Opportunity provides information relating to a possible upcoming grant opportunity, likely to be available during the below Estimated Period of Release. Any details relating to this Forecast Opportunity may change with the published Grant Opportunity.

 Status: As Published

Estimated Period of Release: July to December 2025